Zelda Falls Ill
by KateLovesSmosh
Summary: Set decades after the Twilight era, the former Princess and now Queen, Zelda, is weakened by a strange disease. Will she pull through? Warning- Major character death.
1. Chapter 1

_**Again, I based a lot of this fic on headcanons from my rp blog.**_

******Chapter 1**

"Is there anything else that we can do to make you more comfortable, your majesty?"

Zelda looked happily over to a young woman from where she laid on her bed. It was the daughter of her most trusted adviser, Shad. "No, thank you, my dear. You may run along now, Aria." Her voice was aging, and there was more grey than brown in her hair now.

The girl left, and the queen sighed. Her breath was labored; she coughed. Whatever this disease was, it had taken her body by storm; filling her lungs, causing weight loss, and making her more than tired. It was times like these when she had wished she had produced an heir, because she was afraid she would not be able to lead the country much longer. Chills ran through her under the heavy quilts and she looked out a window. Another chest-rattling cough, another chill, another thought of regret. She should have married and had a child—the fate of Hyrule would soon be in Shad's hands, and he was older than Zelda.

"_But at least he produced an heir_," she thought bitterly.

No one had ever been good enough for the kingdom's beloved queen. It had been around thirty years since Ganondorf's defeat, and in that time she had seen countless suitors, but none held her beliefs. None of them held the same values.

_None of them held the triforce of courage._

It's not that Zelda didn't love Link; of course she did. He came by the castle quite often after that mirror broke, and he was great company. However, Link's place was in Ordon, and her place was in the castle. She never told him she had feelings for him; it only would have made their situation more sad. She regretted this most though, because Link had died about twenty years ago after a goat had rammed into his ribs.

Tears streamed down her face as she remembered the savior of Hyrule, struck down by the animals he loved. She wanted to run to his side in his last hours, but by the time they got word of the tragedy in the castle, it had been too late. Zelda had been planning on telling him later that week, but she never got to. They could've gotten married, they could've had kids... They could've been happy.

But that was all in the past now, and Zelda had more important matters to attend to. Even in her state, she was writing letters in her bed, signing treaties, writing laws. She struggled through her pain to better her country and make some things final before she died, to make it easier on the next ruler. This was something she didn't get when she rose to power, because of the sudden death of her father and her mother being assassinated when she was so young. She had so many loose ends to tie up in those first couple of years, and it was very stressful. She didn't think anyone, old or young should have to go through that.

A knock on her door announced the arrival of Shad. He walked in, looking much younger than he actually was, and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Good day, your majesty. Are you feeling any better?" he asked quietly.

"No, but I do not exactly feel worse." She laughed. "Do you need something, Shad?"

"Well, actually, I was going to suggest making my daughter next in line for the throne instead of me. Queen Zelda, you know I am growing very old, and I am afraid it wouldn't be long until she ascended to the throne anyway, if it came to that."

"Shad, I understand. Aria will make a fine ruler one day, but I would still prefer to have you first." A cough shook her whole being. "You seem to be in fine health, and you could do great things for the country, and possibly make it easier for her when she does become either a princess or queen." She laughed. "How old is she again?"

"She is fifteen, your majesty."

"Ah, fifteen. That was the age I became ruler, when my father died. And you were my favorite advisor, but you were barely an adult yourself!" She shook her head. "Shad, I don't want her to go through that. My condition is deteriorating so rapidly; my reign might end with the week. I need _you_ to take care of the kingdom after I am gone, not your daughter. She's so young, Shad. Let her be a girl for just awhile longer. I'd rather her get to come in as a queen, so you just have to hold out for three more years."

Shad nodded solemnly and stood. He knew all too well that his daughter wouldn't be considered Queen until her eighteenth birthday, even if she was orphaned. "I'm going to be out of town for a couple of days." He kissed her hand. "I may be gone when the goddesses reclaim you, but I'll be back soon. Goodbye, my princess. I will always remember you as the young woman whose knowledge and wisdom far surpassed her years."

"Goodbye Shad, I have to thank you for all you have done for me and my kingdom, and what you will do for it when it's yours."

That would be the last time Zelda would see Shad.

_**Thanks for reading chapter one!**_

_**if you could review for me, I'd really appreciate it!**_

_**I'll get to the next chapters soon!**_


	2. Chapter 2

"Oh, must I wear this dreadful thing?" said Zelda, referring to the itchy dress she had put on under protest in her bedroom.

"Yes, honey. It's your eighteenth birthday party, you have to look even better than normal," Telma said, shaking her head.

This dress was different to her, not her typical style. It was fitted and tight all through, until it hit her knees. There it poofed out like a fish's tail, and was itchy all over. The typically diplomatic and quiet princess was not going down on this one without a fight.

"Telma, please. I look fine in my normal clothes!"

"And I suppose you'll say the same thing on your wedding day." She chuckled. "Honey, it's a special occasion! Please just wear it; I spent months working on it."

She sighed. "Alright, for you." she said with a half-hearted smile.

Later, she sat on her throne and watched the people dance. Zelda loved to dance, but she didn't like to dance with strangers.

"Pr—I mean, my Queen, Master Link has arrived," said a happy Shad, standing with the shorter than average Ordonian who was dressed in his best formal attire.

She stood. "Link! I am so glad you could make it!" Her smile could have lit up the whole world.

"It's the least I could do, your majesty," he said, bowing slightly and offering his hand. "Shall we dance?"

How could she refuse the man of her dreams? She would have danced with him all night if she could. "Yes, of course."

He lead her to the dance floor, and as they danced, the young queen never wanted him to leave.

"You look so beautiful," he'd whisper. "What did Hyrule do to deserve such a wonderful queen?"

They danced until every other guest had left, and even then, they twirled on the dance floor. Link didn't leave the castle that night, nor the next morning. The love that emanated from those two that night should have been enough to make them realize that they were meant for one another, but Link did end up returning to his own home, and Zelda to her duties. He loved her just as much as she loved him, but as neither of them would admit it, they never knew the other's feelings.

So many opportunities like that had passed in their lifetime, and Zelda regretted every time that it could have happened but didn't. Now, looking back on her coming of age from her bedroom so many years later, she couldn't help but think maybe she wouldn't be in this state had she told him. Perhaps she wouldn't be coughing up blood. Perhaps this was her punishment for being such a coward.

******"****_Please, goddesses,"_****she thought, her hands clasped together in prayer. ****"****_Please end my misery, I have been miserable for so long. So long..."_**


	3. Chapter 3

The rain pounded against Zelda's window.

"My queen, I would advise you to leave your room. I understand you are upset, but there are matters to attend to," said a noticeably worried and newly married Shad.

Zelda, now about thirty, had been sitting on the edge of her bed with her head in her hands for weeks now, almost constantly. She looked up wordlessly at Shad, her eyes welled with tears, and her head fell back into her hands. He sat next to her and put an understanding hand on her shuddering back. "Your Highness, please—I understand you lost a friend but life must go on."

"I loved him..." she whispered.

"You... what?" asked Shad, who hadn't heard her through her sobs.

She collected herself slightly. "I loved him, Shad. I loved him, and I never told him. And I just..." She lost her grip on herself and started sobbing uncontrollably again. "And now he's gone, and he will never know!"

"You know, Zelda, I've always thought of you as my child, even if I'm not much older than you. And I must say I would not have expected you to be like this. Yes, he'll never know. Yes, you loved him. But you always had put your kingdom before yourself, and I hate to say that you must calm down." He patted her back gently. "You know your kingdom will suffer if you carry on like this."

She nodded through her sobs. "Thank you Shad, I don't think my own father could have said it any better," she said in between sniffles. "I am glad I have you around again, it was so foolish of me to allow you to leave for those few years."

He nodded. "But you were young, you didn't know. You thought you didn't need a parental figure around, and I thought it was better for you to figure it out by yourself. And look at you now! Hyrule's sweetheart, the strong, independent, loving queen who would do anything to help anyone, who still needs a second opinion every once in awhile."

A cough loud enough to awaken the dead shook her room and brought her back to the present. It was dark outside, and the window filtered just enough moonlight in to see, although she didn't like what she saw. Zelda had coughed up a lot of blood, she didn't know how she could have any left. The old queen sighed and closed her eyes. Eventually, after what may have been minutes or even hours, she opened them to find a figure at her bedside. The figure was that of a man she hadn't seen in years, although he was nearly transparent.

"Link?!" The woman's smile was brighter than sunshine.

The misty figure smiled. "I've missed you so much, Your Highness."

Her eyes were full of tears. "Link, I never got to tell you... I love you, so, so much."

The specter walked to her bedside. "I love you too, Zelda. I never got a chance to tell you, either. Please do not cry, there is no need. I'm here now, and I'll never leave you again."

A wrinkled hand covered her mouth as she was overwhelmed with joy, and she realized she was no longer in pain. It hit her like a wall, and sad tears mixed with the happy.

"Come on, my love, it's time for us to leave," he said, offering her his hand.

When she extended hers, she noticed her skin was no longer wrinkled. She touched her face, and she felt the plump, tight skin from her youth. Link laughed as she took his hand, still looking over herself, now wearing her dress from her birthday ball many years ago.

He whisked her away and carried her into the light.

_**Hey guys! Thanks or reading this, I do have an epilogue on the way, it'll be up tomorrow. If you could review, I'd really appreciate it! **_


	4. Epilogue

It seemed like the entire kingdom had turned out in Castle Town for her funeral. Even the skies cried for her, leaving the whole country with a terrible gloom. Her casket laid in the throne room, in the place she had spent many days in. With Aria next to him, Shad stood in front of the fallen queen, ready to address his new subjects for the first time.

"We have gathered here to remember the life of Hyrule's greatest ruler, our princess, our queen, our Zelda," he said, clearing his throat. "I had known her majesty since she was fifteen, probably longer than anyone who is alive now. She was upset that day; her father had just died. A young, beautiful princess who had knowledge way beyond her years. A majestic, elegant, wise ruler-in-the-making, and she never did something that was better for her than her people. She would have been so happy to see how many of you had come here to send her off into the next world."

The crowd was in an uproar, shouts of "Hyrule loves you!" and "Goddesses save the queen!" were heard over them.

"On this day of tragedy, I have to say I have a terrible task ahead of me. Zelda has asked that I take over for her. It was such an honor to be named next in line, and I can only think of one problem." A hush fell over the crowd, and Shad's voice broke as he said his final line of his speech:

**"****_I_****—****_no one could ever replace her."_**

**_Hey guys!_**

**_thank you so much for reading_**

**_I'd really like to hear from you, send me a review!_**


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